


Bethlehem

by LiraelClayr007



Series: My 31 Days of Ficmas [21]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Christmas Eve, F/M, Falling Snow, pregnancy announcement, travels in the TARDIS
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-22
Updated: 2017-12-22
Packaged: 2019-02-18 08:38:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13096437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiraelClayr007/pseuds/LiraelClayr007
Summary: They walk through the softly falling snow, moonlight guiding them through the sparse trees to the nearby village.“The planet’s really called Bethlehem?” Rose asks.***...in which Rose and the Doctor visit a Christmas Eve festival on a planet called Bethlehem.





	Bethlehem

They walk through the softly falling snow, moonlight guiding them through the sparse trees to the nearby village.

“The planet’s really called Bethlehem?” Rose asks.

“Yep. About three hundred years ago, local time--the planet was called Idaho Six then, very boring--there was a small human colony here. They were barely making it, but you know humans. Never give up, you lot.” He grins down at her, squeezing her hand. “The colony was only a few years old when, one Christmas Eve, a distress call came down. Turned out there was a colony ship in a rather precarious orbit around their little planet; heavily damaged, and badly in need of assistance. And that small group of humans--those beautiful, struggling humans--said, ‘Well, it’s Christmas Eve. We need to offer them help, and a place to stay.’ They had next to nothing, but they welcomed a ship full of aliens--Candellians--and shared everything they had. The two colonies became friends, became  _ family _ , and it wasn’t long before the humans invited the Candellians to stay. Everyone agreed, they renamed the planet Bethlehem, and they’ve been a peaceful and prosperous colony for more than three hundred years. By pooling their resources and working together they became a more harmonious people than they ever could have been apart.”

“That’s beautiful,” Rose says, awe in her voice. “So that’s why their Christmas Eve festival is such a big deal? Because they’re celebrating more than just the anticipation of Christmas?”

They are nearing the edge of the village, and the scent of mulled wine and chocolate fills the air. The path they follow is now lit by more than moonlight--all the trees are strung with strings of fairy lights, thousands of them. In the distance carolers are singing.

“On Bethlehem, people spend Christmas at home with their families. Even the Candellians have taken up the human traditions of giving gifts and sitting down to Christmas dinner, much like they do in many places on Earth. But Christmas Eve is for  _ community _ . They remember the day they found strength in unexpected places, the day they learned that a stranger is perhaps just a friend they haven’t met yet. And they welcome one and all; their festival is well known throughout the galaxy as a place where all are greeted as friends.” The Doctor sighs happily. “It makes my list of top five places to celebrate Christmas. There are surprisingly few places in the universe where aliens truly live together in harmony. And these people, they don’t just survive. They  _ thrive _ .”

The village takes Rose’s breath away; typical earth-like buildings and houses, built of what Rose guesses is the native stone, interspersed with brightly colored, delicate looking glass towers, which can only be Candellian architecture.

And then there are the Candellians themselves. They’re mostly shaped similarly to humans, but the tallest of them is only about three feet tall and they are impossibly thin and wispy. The children are like tiny elves, minus the pointy ears.

Everyone--humans, Candellians, and other various aliens--is smiling.

At first Rose is captivated by the setting--the giant Christmas tree directly in the center of the village, the ethereally beautiful Candellian buildings, the endless fairy lights, the food and drink piled on tables all around the square--but soon she watches the people. The children--locals and aliens alike--run and play together as if they’ve known each other forever, but that, perhaps, could just be the true nature of children of everywhere. The adults, however, are telling. The natives greet one another like they are a giant family, with a shout and a hug and sometimes even a kiss on the cheek. They greet the offworlders like distant relatives; the clasped hands and jovial smiles and hearty  _ Welcome to Bethlehem! _ s have a feel of meeting a long lost cousin at a family reunion. And Rose and the Doctor meet enough of them to be sure that they are genuine.

“If we didn’t have Mum and Dad and Tony at home I might almost want to move here,” Rose says after about half an hour of wandering through the crowded square. “This place is amazing!”

“I don’t think you’d actually like it; winter lasts for half the year, and the year is 450 days long. It’s a very long, cold winter. That’s part of the reason the original colony of humans almost didn’t make it.” Rose shivers involuntarily. The Doctor, watching her, grins. “We can visit as often as you like, though. We can come for Christmas Eve anytime. Even in the summer. Don’t you just love having a time ship?”

Several hours later, after stuffing themselves full of food, singing Christmas carols--some of which they knew and others which were delightfully new to them both--and even dancing, Rose and the Doctor make their way back to the TARDIS. Most of the crowd has dispersed, gone home with their loved ones to await the dawn of Christmas.

“I know why you brought me here,” Rose says, after a few minutes of walking through the silent, snow-covered wood. “These people, they’re like you and me. A mad alien and a shopgirl. We never should have worked, but we came together to save the world and heal universes. And…” She lets her voice trail off, considering something. Coming to a decision, she stops. The Doctor continues walking, not realizing anything is amiss.

“Doctor,” she says, and he must hear something in her voice, because he stops and turns to back to her, a look of concern on his face. She smiles.

“It’s alright. I’m okay,” she says, reassuring him. She reaches out her hands to him, and he walks the few steps back to her, cradling her hands in his. “We came together to save the world and heal universes,” she says again, her voice trembling. “And...to make a baby.”

For a tiny moment it seems like time freezes, like even the snowflakes pause in their soft spirals.

And then Rose is in her Doctor’s arms, and she isn’t sure if her face is wet with melting snowflakes or happy, happy tears.

**Author's Note:**

> 31 Days of Ficmas || Day 21: Holiday Music
> 
> I heard "O Little Town of Bethlehem" on the radio and an idea was born. :)


End file.
